About This Coat

Over one hundred years ago, a Japanese fireman wore this thick, quilted
coat along with a hood, gloves, and pants while fighting fires. In this
photograph, we see the inside of the coat, decorated with a painting
of Momotaro, a legendary Japanese hero, stomping on a wicked oni,
or ogre. When putting out dangerous fires, the fireman wore the coat
with the image on the inside next to his body as a reminder to be as
brave as Momotaro. To prevent catching fire, he soaked himself in
water while dressed in full gear.

Momotaro was given his name ("the peach boy" in Japanese) by his
mother, who discovered him inside a beautiful peach floating in the
river. Poor and childless, she and her husband were thrilled by this
miracle. Momotaro grew into a strong, good-looking, brave boy.
When he was fifteen years old, he received permission from his
parents to travel to the Island of Ogres to stop the monsters who
lived there from killing and stealing. By sharing his mother's delicious
homemade dumplings, he made friends with a fierce dog, a monkey,
and a pheasant along the way. At first, these creatures quarreled but
Momotaro convinced them to help him fight the ogres instead. The
pheasant flew at the ogres' heads, pecking their eyes, the monkey
clawed and scratched, and the dog snarled and snapped ferociously
until the monsters surrendered. After they promised to return everything
they had stolen and to live peacefully, Momotaro gave the ogres
some dumplings, too.